"A son can bear with equanimity the loss of his father, but the loss of his inheritance may drive him to despair"

In this quote, Niccolo Machiavelli suggests that while a kid might be able to handle the psychological pain of losing his daddy, the loss of the inheritance he is expecting may be too much for him to bear. This implies that inheritance and material possessions can hold great significance for people and their sense of wellness. Machiavelli may also be recommending that individuals are more attached to concrete possessions than intangible ones like relationships, which can be changed.